


The angels are calling your name, but I'm screaming it

by MajorMinorMusicality



Category: Daredevil (TV), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Angst, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Reader Has Powers, Reader is a Marine
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-05
Updated: 2017-05-14
Packaged: 2018-10-15 01:55:49
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 16
Words: 16,071
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10548086
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MajorMinorMusicality/pseuds/MajorMinorMusicality
Summary: You're an Avenger. Frank Castle breaks into your apartment.Life is weird.





	1. Stitch me up

You were exhausted. Your feet were dragging as you went to your apartment. You just wanted to sleep for a week straight.

The mission had been hell. The HYDRA base was teeming with agents. They seemed unending as they poured out of the base, weapons drawn and firing. You took a few bullets to the side during the battle, knowing full and well you were going to have a few knew scars to add to your collection. You liked scars, they were like a story on your skin.

As you walked into your apartment, you realized something was off. Your hand went to the gun on your hip, pulling it out and turning off the safety. You silently sat your bag down next to the front door and quietly made your way through the apartment. You glanced at the hat on the coffee table as you passed it. It wasn’t yours, and your knew none of your friends would be dumb enough to leave the hat during a break in.

You turned the corner into the hallway, aiming your gun at a shadowy figure at the end.

“You’ve made one hell of a mistake,” You growled. “Because I’ve had a bad day, and you’re definitely making it worse.”

The man snorted, his voice gruff and gravelly as he spoke. “M’sorry ‘bout that, ma’am.”

“Ma’am?” You smirked. “First thief I’ve met who’s polite.”

“Not a thief,” He replied. “Just squatting here while you were gone. Didn’t realize you were back.”

“Apparently not,” You muttered, holstering your gun. You winced as you felt the slash in your back pop open again. You sighed, knowing you wouldn’t be able to reach it by yourself, and you didn’t want to go to the hospital. “You any good at stitching wounds, Mr. Not-Thief?”

“Uh…yeah,” He replied, sounding slightly perplexed.

“Good, I could use some help.” You holstered your weapon and went towards the bathroom. As you did, you pulled your shirt off and tossed it to the side. You could feel warm blood pooling down your back. It wasn’t exactly pleasant.

You grabbed the first aid kit out of the cabinet, setting it on the counter. You winced at your reflection. You certainly looked like hell. You had a bruise on yourcheekbone that surrounded a cut from where you got pistol whipped. Your lip was split, and you had a few stitches on your upper arm in two different spots from bullet wounds. More bruises danced across your skin, one looked like a boot print.

The intruder had followed you, and you finally got a good look at him. You felt your eyebrows raise in surprise as you recognized him. It was the Punisher-- Frank Castle. His angular bone structure, slightly squinty eyes as if he were studying everything around him, his nose that was unique from all the times it had been broken. He looked just as beat up as you did.

His eyes went to your wounds, cataloging the immense amount of injuries you had sustained during a raid on a HYDRA base.

“Who did this to you?” He muttered as you propped yourself up on the bathroom counter. You crossed your legs, looking at him through the mirror.

“They look worse,” You smirked as he began to thread a needle. “Glad you broke in. I can’t reach back there without popping a few more stitches.”

He scowled, “What happened?”

“My team and I went out to take care of some stuff.” You replied, feeling the needle biting into the skin. The Punisher gave you a quizzical glance when you didn’t flinch or hiss in pain from the needle. He dug it into your skin, gauging your reaction with wide eyes. “I don’t feel pain.” You explained, a smirk tugging at your lips. “Do you not recognize me?”

“Should I?”

“I have an action figure,” You snorted, arching an eyebrow. You watched as Frank slowly pieced it together. When he finally realized who you were, he cursed under his breath.

“You’re an Avenger.” He muttered, tying off a stitch. 

“Smart man,” You smirked at him through the mirror. You saw a flash of hesitation in his eyes, then he went back to stitching you up. “I’m not going to turn you in, Frank.”

“Shouldn’t you?” He replied as he tied off another stitch.

“Mm, probably.” You shrugged. “But I think I owe you for stitching me up.”

Frank snorted in reply, focusing on his stitching.

“You drink all my coffee?”

“I was going to buy more.” He replied as he focused on the gash he was stitching up. “But then you showed up and I got little distracted.”

You both lapsed into a silence. The only sounds in the room was your breathing and the sound of Frank stitching up the gash in your back. Finally, he bit the thread and grabbed the gauze out of the first aid kit. He taped the gauze over the stitched up wound on your back. His calloused hands were gentle as he did, as if he were afraid he might break you.

“Thanks,” You told him as you climbed off of the counter. “I owe you one.”

He snorted, “I broke into your apartment. You don’t owe me shit.”

“You saved me a trip to the ER.” You crossed your arms as you looked up at him while leaning against the counter. “I hate that place, so I owe you one. Feel free to sleep on the couch if you want.”

* * *

You woke up to the smell of fresh coffee. You slowly opened your eyes, seeing a paper cup sitting on the nightstand with a small note next to it written in blocky handwriting.

                _Thanks._

You sat up slowly, careful of her numerous stitches in your body. You grabbed the coffee and took a drink. Your nose wrinkled at the bitterness of the straight black coffee. You usually poured an ungodly amount of sugar into your coffee.

You climbed out of bed, heading for the kitchen to find the sugar. Frank had left no trace that he was here other than the coffee. At least he was a considerate house guest and had bought you coffee. You grabbed the sugar and poured a healthy amount in and stirred it.

Your life was certainly odd.


	2. Coffee

Between scouting out HYDRA bases and training, you had neglected to go grocery shopping. You made a mental note to do so as soon as possible. Of course, Stark liked to point out that you wouldn’t need to go grocery shopping if you just moved into the compound upstate. You had declined, knowing that you would go crazy being surrounded by all of your teammates at all times.

It wasn’t that you didn’t like your teammates, you just preferred your solitude when you were trying to relax. You had never been much of a people person, it’s what made you such a good retrieval specialist with SHIELD. Now, SHIELD was gone, and you were working exclusively for the Avengers while doing odd security jobs to make ends meet.

You walked into the diner close to your apartment, happy to find it was mostly empty. There was only one guy sitting at a booth, a dark cap pulled low over his eyes to obscure most of his face. From the parts of his face that you could see, you saw mostly bruises, a split lip.

Realization hit you.

You strolled over to the booth and sat across from Frank, a smirk tugging at your lips. He looked up from his coffee at you, amusement glimmering in his dark eyes.

“Well, if it isn’t one of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.” He stated, a ghost of a smirk on his lips. “What’s a girl like you doing in a place like this?”

“I haven’t gone grocery shopping,” You admitted with a shrug. “Didn’t think I’d see you again, Frank.”

The waitress came over, and you gave her your order. She left, and you turned your attention back to Frank. Now that he was looking at you, you could see numerous bruises blooming across his skin. His jaw had a few days worth of stubble on it, and he looked exhausted.

“You’re staring.” He pointed out.

“Y’know, the offer to crash on my couch still stands.” You took his coffee mug from his hands and took a sip. He looked at you like you had just slapped him, and you smirked over the brim of the mug. “You still owe me coffee.” You reminded him, causing him to smile crookedly at you.

“Nice shiner by the way.” He stated. “What’s that from?”

“Captain America, actually,” You chuckled. “We were training, and he hit a little too hard.”

"You know Captain America?” Frank blinked in surprise.

“Remember that part about me being an Avenger?” You pointed out. “Steve and I train once a week together. I’m the only one who can really keep up with him, y’know, being enhanced and all that jazz.”

The waitress came back to the table, setting down a pot of coffee and a mug. Frank took the fresh mug as the waitress left again.

“How are you enhanced if you don’t mind me askin’?” He took a drink of the fresh coffee.

“Gonna have to get me drunk for that story, Frank.” You muttered, not eager to go into the details of your past. He nodded as if he understood, taking another drink of his coffee. You refilled your own mug, grabbing the sugar and pouring a large amount into it. Frank stared at the sugar pouring into your coffee with a raised brow.

“You want some coffee with that sugar?” He snorted.

“Bite me,” You growled, stirring your coffee. You flashed him a smirk, and he chuckled as he shook his head. “So, do you just frequent this diner often or…?”

“They make good coffee,” He shrugged. “The wait staff is pretty nice…no one’s tried to turn me in.” He gave you a look that was on the verge of a scowl. “Still aren’t sure why _you_ haven’t turned me in.”

“Well,” You sighed, setting your mug down. “Everyone keeps telling me you’re the bad guy. The media, my team, but I can see why you do the things you do.” He was silent as he watched you. You pushed your hair out of your face, then propped your chin on your hand. “There was a time where I was like you, y’know. Out playing vigilante until SHIELD brought me in about eight years ago. I think we vigilantes have to stick together.”

Frank snorted, looking out the window for a moment. When he finally looked at you again, he had a sad look to his dark eyes that made your brow furrow in confusion.

“You go out and kill people every night?”

“Well, not _every_ night.” You smirked. You saw the corner of his lip twitch as if he were fighting the urge to smirk back at you. “Like I said, Frank, I used to. SHIELD wasn’t big on me playing vigilante, but they’re gone now. I’m working with the Avengers, now. We’re all basically vigilantes if you think about it.” You gave him the most sincere look you could manage in your tired state. “I’m not gonna turn you in, alright? You take out people that deserve it. That’s more than Daredevil does. He just knocks the guys out.”

Frank snorted, a small laugh escaping his chest. “Yeah, Red’s got a weird way of doing things.”

The waitress delivered your food, setting the check on the table before heading back to the kitchen to flirt with the cook. You bit into a piece of bacon, shoving the plate closer to Frank.

“I’m not gonna finish all of this.” You told him.

“Why do I get the feeling you’re trying to take care of me?” He frowned, but picked up a piece of bacon and bit into it.

“I already told you, Frank.” You pointed your bacon strip at him. “We vigilantes have to stick together.”


	3. Warm me up

It was pouring down rain. You were standing by the window in your apartment, a mug of hot coffee in your hands as you watched the torrential downpour raining down on Hell’s Kitchen. The lightning would flash and illuminate the street below.

Frank had been living at your place for the past two weeks, and you had gotten used to him being around. He was a good houseguest. He always made coffee in the mornings when he got in from his nightly triumphs in justice. He washed the dishes when he had the chance, and you had grown accustomed to having him around your place.

The lightning flashed again, and you saw someone limping through the rain. You frowned, setting your mug on the windowsill as you leaned closer to the window to get a better look. The lightning flashed again, and you recognized the skull emblazoned on the Kevlar vest. You cursed, rushing to the door. You grabbed your coat off of the hook by the door and darted down the stairs as fast as you possibly could. You barreled out of the apartment building and rushed over to where Frank was leaning heavily against a brick wall.

The rain was pouring so heavily you were already soaked. Frank was absolutely drenched, and the rain was mixing with the blood pouring out of a wound on his collar bone. You slung his good arm around your shoulders, wrapping your arm around his waist and helped him towards your building. Even over the pouring rain and the thunder, you could hear his breathing was getting pretty ragged.

“Stay awake, Frank.” You murmured as you helped him up the stairs. Thankfully, your building was only three stories, and you lived on the second one. Frank didn’t reply, but he seemed to be leaning on you more and more as you helped him up the stairs.

Finally, you made it into your apartment. Instead of dropping Frank off on his usual spot on the couch, you steered him into your room and helped him onto the bed. You knew your blankets would be getting blood on them, but you could always get more. You just hoped Frank wouldn’t die in your bed. You’d have to get a whole new bed.

You stripped off his Kevlar, wincing as he hissed in pain when you jarred him. You tossed it away, then quickly ripped open his shirt so he wouldn’t have to move any more than he needed to. The wound on his collar bone was deep and jagged and blood was pooling out and creating a puddle of blood on the blankets. You rushed to the bathroom and grabbed a few towels and the large first aid kit. You went back to your bedroom and quickly tucked a few towels under him as gently as you could.

"Frank, hey—c’mon, you gotta stay awake.” You told him as you began cleaning the wound. His eyes fluttered open, looking at you. They were slightly glazed over, and you were beginning to worry. You weren’t a doctor, and he seriously needed one. You didn’t know if whatever had stabbed him had hit something vital. You weren’t prepared to treat a severe wound like this. “Frank, what happened out there?”

“Drug cartel,” He rasped as you thread a needle. “Had more men than I-I was expecting. One of ‘em got a lucky shot in.”

“I can see that.” You muttered as you took a steadying breath. “This is gonna hurt…or so I’m told.” Frank let out a small chuckle that made him wince. You began stitching the wound, and he grit his teeth as the needle dug into his flesh.

It was quiet for a moment, and you saw his eyes fluttering shut again.

“Frank, stay awake.” You growled as you tied off a stitch. “Look, how about I tell you a story?”

“I get to…to hear about your secretive…past?” He muttered through gritted teeth.

You rolled your eyes, “You’re bleeding out on my bed and you’re still a sarcastic asshole.” You gave him a small smile, then began to tell him part of your past. “I was in the army.”

“Really?”

You nodded as you tied off another stitch. You were up to number seven now, and you knew there was going to be at least twenty stitches by the time you were done.

“I was a Marine,” You told him as you continued to stitch up the wound in his collar bone. There was blood on your hands, and it was causing you to shake slightly. Memories were starting to resurface and panic was rising with them. “I was a Raider.”

Frank smirked, “I was Force Recon.” He winced as you tugged a little too tightly on one of the knots of his stitches.

“Sorry,” You murmured, but kept going. “There was one time I was out on a mission and we were camping before heading out in the morning. We were out in the sandbox, and there was a guy on the team who was terrified of spiders. I don’t really blame him, those camel spiders are the most terrifying things I’ve ever seen, and I’ve been chased by the Hulk.”

Frank snorted, “That big…big green thing?” He sounded weak, and you were nervous. Frank never sounded weak, and hearing it for the first time was pretty terrifying to you.

“Yeah,” You chuckled. “Anyway, the guy who was afraid of spiders fell asleep first, and me and some of the others decided we could make him think there was a camel spider in his tent. So, we took some tent poles and a few jackets and made a giant fake spider. We rigged it to hang down above him, and I swear, I have _never_ heard a grown man scream like that. It was amazing.”

Frank laughed weakly, “That’s nothin’. We had a guy convinced he was in a coma for an hour.”

You snorted a laugh, “Jesus! That’s awful, Frank!”

“It was funny.” He defended.

You tied off the last stitch, snipping the thread. You then began to clean the blood off of his skin, noticing just how cold his skin had become from the blood loss. You quickly taped gauze onto the line of stitches, then gathered up the mess you had made. You disposed of it, then grabbed extra blankets out of your closet before heading back to the bed where Frank was lying with his eyes closed.

“Frank?” You asked quietly.

“M’awake.” He mumbled, but his eyes remained shut. You grabbed the towels you had put under him, tossing them onto the floor. You unlaced his boots and tugged them off of his feet along with his socks. “You undressin’ me?”

"You need to get out of these wet clothes.” You replied as you went to the buckle of his belt. He weakly swatted at your hands, and you let him unbuckle his combat pants. You averted your gaze as he shoved the pants off, letting out a small groan of pain as he moved. You heard the pants hit the floor, and you draped a thick blanket on top of him. Deciding he needed more warmth, you added another blanket over him. “Frank, how are you feeling?”

“Cold,” He admitted. “Blankets aren’t doing much, (Y/N).”

You chewed your lip nervously. You knew skin to skin contact was a very good way to warm someone up. And it wasn’t like you weren’t attracted to Frank. You were. From the moment you had met him, you had thought of the guy as extremely attractive. Something about a guy who could hold his own in a fight was extremely inviting to you. As odd as it was, you found bruises and scars pretty damn hot. Frank had scars decorating his skin that you had seen when you had helped him out of his shirt earlier. He also had a very chiseled body that you wanted to run your hands over.

“I can hear you thinking.” Frank muttered, peeling open an eye to look at you.

“Do…you want me to warm you up?” You felt a blush coloring your cheeks when you realized that it could be taken the wrong way. You weren’t good at this kind of thing. Your strengths were fighting and weapons and not getting close to people. Yet, you had still gotten close to Frank. Something about being around someone who had been through hell just like you had…well, it was nice. He never pushed you for information on your past, letting you talk about it in short spurts when you wanted to.

Frank snorted, “Not sure if I’m in the mood for that.”

“That—That’s not what I meant.” You muttered as you crawled under the numerous blankets you had draped over Frank’s body. You swallowed nervously as you pressed yourself up against him, shivering when you felt how cold he was from the blood loss and the torrential downpour he had been caught in. “Is this ok?”

“You’re warm,” He mumbled as he carefully moved his good arm and pulled you closer to him. He kept his arm around you, and you felt your heart thumping harshly in your chest. “Thanks.”

“Don’t die in my bed.” You muttered as you rested you head on his good shoulder.

Frank chuckled quietly, “I’ll do my best, ma’am.”

You rolled your eyes, “Seriously, Frank? _Ma’am_?”

“Force of habit.” He mumbled, sounding incredibly close to sleep.

You listened to his breathing. Slowly, it sounded less labored and more relaxed as he finally fell asleep. You looked up at him, seeing that he looked so different in his sleep. The bruises on his skin were a usual sight. However, the peaceful look to him was very new. You may have only known him a little over two weeks, but you had never seen him look so relaxed.

It was nice.


	4. Morning

You woke up when the light from the window hit you. The rain clouds had moved out, and you were a little relived that the torrential downpour had left the city. Your eyes adjusted to the light, and you felt a small smile on your face as you saw Frank still sleeping next to you. You carefully sat up to not disturb Frank. You glanced at the bandaged on his collar bone, seeing that it was a little dark from blood. You’d change it once Frank woke up. You didn’t want to wake him up when he was sleeping so peacefully.

Quietly, you climbed out of bed. You carefully pulled the blanket up around him, noticing that he had a little more color to his cheeks than he had last night. Before you left the room, you drew the curtains shut to block the light from hitting Frank and gathered up his bloody clothing from the floor.

You turned on the coffee maker to make a fresh pot, knowing that Frank would like to have a fresh cup when he woke up. You went to the washer you had sitting off to the side of your kitchen and quickly sprayed down Frank’s clothes with peroxide to get the blood out of it. You had become a pro at getting blood out of clothes due to your years of getting shot and stabbed. Once the spot treatment was done, you started up the washer and tossed the clothes inside. You then headed for the kitchen to pour yourself a cup of coffee with plenty of sugar.

Last night had been slightly terrifying. There had been a moment where you thought Frank was going to die in your apartment. The amount of blood gushing out of the wound was sickening. Not to mention the fact that you were reminded of your time in the Marines. You had seen war before Loki had brought aliens to New York. You had seen good men die, no matter how hard you had tried to save them.

You pushed the thoughts of your time in the marines away before you started thinking of the reason you had been given an honorable discharge. That was a whole part of your past you didn’t like thinking about and you just wanted to pretend it never happened no matter how much your scars reminded you of what had really happened.

As you sipped your coffee and tried to push down years of memories you didn’t want to think about, your phone rang. You grabbed it off of the counter, seeing Tony Stark’s name flashing across the screen. You sighed, hoping he was calling for something stupid and not another mission to hunt down Loki’s staff.

“Hello?” You answered.

" _I’ve got a very mopey bird-man here at the Tower.”_ Tony replied, sounding slightly annoyed. “ _Something about a lesson in parkour you were supposed to give him?_ ”

You groaned, “I forgot. It’s been a…rough night.”

“ _Ooh,”_ You could practically see the smirk on Tony’s face. “ _You have a_ special friend _over for the night? Thought you were too busy to date…or you’d end up screwing Capsicle because you army types like to play well with each other.”_

You rolled your eyes so hard you could have sworn you saw your brain. “Stark, what the hell is wrong with you?” 

“ _People have been asking that for years, sweetheart. You figure it out, you tell me._ ” Tony chuckled. “ _Birdbrain 2.0 is currently heading to your place, so I hope your new friend doesn’t get jealous._ ”

“No-“ You sighed, pinching the bridge of your nose. “Tell Sam I have to reschedule, alright?”

 _Do I look like your personal errand boy?_ ” Tony scoffed.

“You don’t want me to tell you what I think you look like.” You snorted.

“ _Well, I already know you’re going to tell me I’m a handsome son of a bitch._ ” Tony replied cheekily. “ _I’ll tell Wilson you have to reschedule. Have fun with your_ friend _.”_

You hung up, then quickly fired off a text to Sam to apologize and reschedule your lesson on free running. Sam was very eager to learn how to free run, saying it would come in handy while he tracked down Bucky Barnes.

You poured another cup of coffee into the mug with little cartoon dogs on it that Frank seemed to prefer when he had breakfast with you. You went to your room, setting the mug on the nightstand as Frank began to stir.

“Time is it?” He mumbled. His eyes cracked open as he frowned up at you.

“About nine in the morning.” You replied as you grabbed fresh gauze and the tape out of the first aid kit. You sat down on the edge of the bed, pulling away the old gauze from his wound. You winced at the line of stitches. It was a little unsettling to see such a large wound on Frank. However, you were kind of proud at the clean stitching you had done. It was nice to see your stitching abilities were getting better.

“Thanks.” Frank murmured as you finished putting clean gauze on the wound. You got up, tossing the old gauze into the trash can in the bathroom. You came back into your room to see Frank had managed to sit up and was sipping his coffee.

“You scared the hell out of me, Frank.” You told him as you sat on the edge of the bed next to him. “You know you could have had me come in to help you.”

“I can handle it by myself.” He replied.

“Clearly,” You muttered sarcastically.

“This isn’t your fight.”

You sighed, knowing how stubborn men like Frank Castle could be. All the men on your team were stubborn as hell, and you had figured out it was better not to nag them into doing things you wanted them to do. It was just better for them to come to the conclusion that you were right on their own.

Plus, after you were discharged from the army you had been a vigilante for about a year before SHEILD had brought you in to work for them. You knew just how stubborn a vigilante could be. You were pretty damn sure even Daredevil was as stubborn as any other vigilante, so it was a safe bet the Punisher was, too.

"Can you at least promise me you won’t get hurt like that again?” You sighed, squeezing his knee. “I already have a pretty stressful job. I’d like it if you didn’t almost die in my bed, alright?”

Frank snorted, amused. “I can try.”

“That’s all I ask.” You chuckled. “Now, you want breakfast?”

“Still trying to take care of me.” Frank sighed, shaking his head. “I’m a big boy, (Y/N).”

“Shut up,” You rolled your eyes as you stood up. “You want waffles?”

He smiled crookedly at you. “Hell yeah.”


	5. Friendly Spar

As far as safe houses went, your apartment was probably one of the better ones Frank had been in. He had seen your collection of weapons in your apartment. You not only had numerous guns and knives, but you knew how to use every single one of them with ease. Of course, Frank had never actually seen you in action and he was curious to see what you were really capable of.

You were an enigma to Frank. You would come home from training or missions with the other Avengers with new bruises and wounds that he would sometimes help re-stitch. Your enhancement to not feel any pain meant you would move without too much restriction and pop stitches. You never really liked to talk about your work, and he never pushed. Still, he was curious about your work life.

Tonight, you had come back from a mission with the Avengers with a pretty spectacular black eye and a split lip. Frank watched as you dropped your duffle bag by the front door as it shut, then you went over to the couch and flopped down face first into the cushions.

“Rough day at work?”

You snorted, “That obvious?” You rolled over onto your back, staring up at him as he leaned over the back of the couch. “Surprised you’re not out kicking ass, Punisher.”

“I was just about to head out.” He replied. “You ok?”

“Don’t feel pain, remember?” You reminded him.

“I remember,” He sighed. “You ever gonna tell me about that?”

“Why are you so curious?” You scowled at him. He found it cute how your nose would scrunch up slightly when you scowled. You sat up on the couch, continuing to scowl.

He shrugged, “I just am. You have enough assault rifles to open up a store. You say you’re a terrifying sight on the battle field.” He knew he needed to quickly change the conversation. Any mention of your past would end up with you going to your room to sulk while he just awkwardly left the apartment due to guilt over making you feel bad. He only knew that you had been a Marine Raider. Everything else was a mystery.

You scoffed, “Because I _am_.”

“Yet I haven’t seen it.” Frank smirked crookedly at you. “I only know that you can use those rifles because I’ve seen you clean them.”

“Are you challenging me, Castle?” You smirked, your scowl disappearing. “Don’t you have vigilante stuff to do?”

He shrugged, “The arms dealer I’m after won’t be in town until tomorrow night, so I’m free. C’mon, just a friendly spar. You’re always fidgety after you come home from a fight. A spar has to be more fun than stress cleanin’.”

You rolled your eyes, “This is what I get for getting a roommate.”

Frank arched an eyebrow, “I’m your roommate?”

“You’ve been living here for a month, Frank, remember?” You sighed as you got to your feet. “Not that I’m complaining, you make good coffee, and you actually do the dishes. That’s more than Barton does. Last time he crashed at my place, he left it a pigsty.”

“Barton’s the one with the arrows, right?” Frank chuckled as he helped you move the couch out of the way.

“Hawkeye,” You nodded as you moved the coffee table. “He never misses. Of course, he also doesn’t pay much attention out of the field. One time Romanoff pegged him in the head with a shoe when he popped his head out of the air vents.”

Frank chuckled, “He plays in the vents?”

“Yeah, and I don’t really understand it.” You sighed as you put your hands on your hips. There was now a large space in the living room that would be perfect to spar in. You turned to face Frank, seeing a low fire in his eyes as if he were eager to fight you. “So, any rules?”

“Nothing below the belt.” Frank replied as he shrugged off his jacket. You did the same thing, and he found his eyes trailing over your shirt that was a little tight across your chest. The Captain America shield on your chest was like a target drawing him in. He forced himself to meet your eyes, and he was relieved to see that you hadn’t noticed. “No hair pulling, either.”

You snorted, “Just because I’m a girl doesn’t mean I automatically go for the hair pulling technique.”

He shrugged as a smirk appeared on his face. “Just makin’ sure.”

Frank was a little shocked when you lunged at him. You were a lot quicker than he was expecting, and it definitely threw him off for a moment. You wrapped your arms around his upper body, pinning his arms to his sides. You were also stronger than he was expecting, but he managed to break out of your hold and pushed you away.

Frank lunged for you, and you ducked under his hold. Your leg shot out, and you hooked your foot around the back of his knee and pulled. His leg buckled and he smacked into the hardwood floor. He grunted in pain, but pushed it aside before he grabbed at you. He moved quick, his arm wrapping around your throat and squeezing hard enough to make breathing a little difficult.

“You’re good.” He growled. “You weren’t lying. Seems I’m better, though-“ Frank was cut off as your elbow flew back and slammed into his ribs hard enough to make him lose his hold on your throat. He doubled over as pain racked his ribs, and you used the moment to thrust your leg back and slam into his sternum. He fell onto his back, but when you attempted to jump onto him and hold him down, his fist flew upward and slammed into your jaw.

He paled when he realized what he had just done. He watched as you wiped a little blood off of the corner of your mouth. He sat up, his heart slamming harshly into his ribs.

Frank had just hurt you. He had punched you in the jaw, and he knew that you were going to get rid of him for hurting you. It was what he deserved for hurting you. You got beat up for a living being an Avenger, and you didn’t deserve to get beat up in your own home.

“M’sorry,” He muttered as he got to his feet.

“Don’t be,” You replied. Frank felt utterly dumbfounded at what you had just said. He had just _punched_ you, and you seemed completely fine with it. You seemed to notice his confusion, and you gave him a kind smile he hadn’t seen in years. “Look, I’m not mad, Frank. You don’t punch near as hard as Steve does. He broke my nose once during training.”

“Captain America broke your nose?”

You chuckled, amused. “He felt so bad he bought me ice cream.” You walked over to Frank, clapping a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t worry about punching me, alright? It didn’t hurt. Now, if you feel that bad about hitting me, you can make dinner tonight.”

“I suck at cooking.” He reminded you.

“Well, I guess I can help.” You smirked, giving his arm a squeeze before letting go. “Let’s put the furniture back to where it’s supposed to go and make dinner.”


	6. Breakfast with Cap

Jogging with Captain America was one hell of a workout. Thanks to your enhancement, you had a more increased muscle mass which meant you were one of the few people who could keep up with Steve on his workouts. However, that didn’t stop the entire process from being awful when he was at your apartment at five AM.

The city was quieter in the mornings, and you didn’t mind the quiet. It was peaceful, the only sounds were your feet hitting the pavement, and Steve’s damn close to thundering on the pavement. The man was huge, and made a lot of noise when he moved. No wonder he liked to charge into buildings instead of sneaking it. You were pretty sure he didn’t have the ability to sneak in anywhere.

The run finished, and you decided to buy breakfast at your favorite diner in Hell’s Kitchen.

Once inside, you found yourself looking for the usual image of Frank in his baseball cap with bruises splashed across his skin. He was there in his usual booth, drinking his plain black coffee. He glanced up at you, eyes rounding slightly as he recognized Steve with you.

You knew Frank was a wanted man, and you gave him a slight nod before steering Steve to a booth behind Frank. You sat behind Frank, facing Steve.

“I’m assuming you’re buying breakfast since I lapped you?” Steve teased as he looked at his menu.

“I _let_ you lap me.” You replied. “But yes, I’m buying breakfast. Try to keep it under fifty bucks, alright, Rogers?”

Steve chuckled. The usual waitress came by and took your order, and managed to not look surprised when Steve ordered enough food for three guys his size. She left to turn in the order after leaving behind two mugs and a fresh pot of coffee.

“So,” Steve sighed as he poured himself a cup, then you. You poured an unhealthy amount of sugar into your coffee as he spoke. “I heard one of the guys from Stark’s R&D department asked you out. Kyle, right?”

You snorted as you stirred your coffee. “Kyle isn’t really my type. I think he only wants to get with me because I’m an Avenger.” You fixed Steve with an annoyed glare that wasn’t fazing him. “You’re getting as bad as Nat, you know. Leave my dating life out of this.”

“Says the woman who tried to set me up with someone whenever she gets the chance.” Steve rolled his eyes.

You shrugged, smirking at him. “You need to find something outside of work that doesn’t involve working out or brooding.”

Steve scoffed, “I don’t _brood_.”

“You do a little.” You smirked over your coffee mug at him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A short little chapter to show your friendship with Steve.


	7. The Red Dress

Frank wouldn’t admit it out loud, but he was exhausted. The human trafficking ring he had busted up had had a bunch of people that were more than willing to go up against him. They were a bunch of idiots, in Frank’s opinion.

He crawled in through the window of your apartment, hearing rock music being played. He knew you liked to play music when you were cooking or cleaning. He shut the window as he looked around the apartment, not seeing you anywhere. He took off his Kevlar, setting it on his duffle-bag that was now sitting under the window he had just come in through.

You weren’t in the kitchen when he went in there to grab a beer. He listened to the music, hearing that it was coming from your room. Before he could go investigate, he heard the music stop.

“Stupid dress,” He heard you mutter. He frowned in confusion. In the month and a half that he had known you, he had never seen you in anything other than jeans or sweatpants. He wondered what you were wearing a dress for.

Was it a date?

Jealousy bubbled through him, and his frown turned into a scowl. Who the hell were you seeing? You hadn’t mentioned seeing anyone. It was probably Captain America, seeing as you two had seemed incredibly chummy during breakfast the other day. Of course…it wasn’t any of his business and he knew that. Still, it didn’t stop the jealousy from rearing its ugly head and pissing him off.

His jealousy was suddenly forgotten as you came into the living room in a stunning, floor-length red dress that hugged your body. Frank felt his mouth go dry as he saw you.

You looked completely different in a dress. Your normally messy hair was perfectly done, and you were wearing actual makeup that only seemed to accentuate your beauty. What really got him was the fact that your dress was hanging off of your shoulders revealing more skin than he had ever seen before.

“Jesus.” He muttered, taking a long drink of his beer.

“Good, you’re home.” You smiled at him. “Can you zip me up?” You turned, revealing your bare back to him and making his mouth go dry all over again. Now his heart was thumping in his chest and making it hard to concentrate on the task at hand. He managed to get off the couch and walk over to you. He zipped your dress up, careful not to brush his fingers against your bare skin even though he definitely wanted to. Once the dress was zipped up, you turned to face him with a hesitant look to your eyes. “How ridiculous do I look?”

Frank snorted, “Ridiculous isn’t the word I’d use.” His eyes raked over the dress that hugged your body, fitting like a very well-tailored glove. “What are you dressed up for, anyway?”

You sighed as you grabbed a black clutch from the table by the front door. “There’s some charity event the Avengers are supposed to attend. Of course, Romanoff and Barton both managed to get out of it, and so did Banner. That means it’s just me, Stark, and Steve going to this stupid thing.” You leaned over to inspect your reflection in the mirror over the table. Frank found himself ogling your ass because it looked _amazing_ in that red dress. His body was starting to show how attractive he found you in that dress and he prayed you wouldn’t notice.

“Sounds boring.” He muttered as he sat down on the couch so you wouldn’t notice anything weird. “Have fun.”

You snorted, “Yeah, right. I’m only going for the free booze. So, there’s a good chance I’m coming home drunk or crashing at the Tower. So, don’t wait up.”

He nodded, watching as you sashayed out of the apartment.

* * *

You probably shouldn’t have had that last martini. Everything was blurry around the edges and you had a pleasant warmth radiating through your body. You managed to get your keys out of your clutch, but finding the right key for your front door was harder than you anticipated it to be. You let out a small whine, leaning against the door.

The door swung open, and you stumbled forward. You let out a yelp of surprise, then a set of strong gun-callused hands grabbed you to keep you from falling to the floor. You looked up to see Frank and you let out a giggle.

“Hey, Handsome!” You grinned drunkenly up at him. He smirked at you crookedly and you reached up to boop his nose. “S’good to see you.” You slurred as you stumbled towards your room.

“Good party?” Frank snorted as he followed you to make sure you didn’t fall and hurt yourself.

“Super fun,” You nodded sincerely. “Stark has top notch booze. Hey!” You spun to face Frank, teetering unsteadily in your heels you had kept on the entire night. “You should come next time!”

“Uh…that’s not a good idea.” He replied as he turned you and steered you to your room. “Wanted criminal, remember?”

“Oh, right.” You pouted over your shoulder at him. “That _sucks_ , Frankie.” He made you sit on your bed, and you flopped back with a dramatic sigh as you managed to kick off your heels. “Those parties are super fun.”

“I’m sure they are.” He chuckled as he grabbed a pair of sweats and a t-shirt from your dresser. “You think you can change on your own?”

“The zipper is hard.” You whined as you sat up on your elbows. “Help me?” You pouted up at him, and he gave you an amused smirk. He offered you his hands, and you took them and let him pull you to your feet. He turned you around, unzipping your dress. Even in your drunken state, you could tell he was being an absolute gentleman about the whole ordeal. He kept you facing away from him as he helped you into your shirt, then into your sweats.

“Y’know, I was kind of a wanted criminal.” You told him as he pulled the blankets back for you to crawl into bed. “For a whole year I ran around New York and fought crime and killed bad guys. They called me the Shadow. That was what the army called me, y’know.”

“The Shadow?” Frank frowned at you as he pulled the blankets around your shoulders.

You nodded, “”Cause I wore all black and you didn’t see me comin’ till it was too late. And ‘cause I was part of the Shadow Corps.”

“Shadow Corps…?” Frank sat on the edge of the bed, waiting for you to continue.

You let out a sleepy yawn, the booze in your system making you tired. “They were experiments to make a perfect soldier.”

“Like Captain America?”

“Kinda,” You shrugged as your eyes began to close. “They wanted soldiers with higher endurance and a high tolerance for pain.” You grabbed his hand and squeezed it as a sleepy-drunk smile lit up your face. “Thanks for takin’ care of me Frank.”

“No problem,” He squeezed your hand back. “Get some sleep, alright?”

You yawned again before snuggling deeper under your blankets. You quickly drifted off to sleep.               

* * *

 

Despite your enhancement to not feel pain, you could still get killer hangovers. It was an injustice and you felt cheated. What use was it to have the ability to walk off a bullet wound when you couldn’t handle any level of light after a night of partying?

You pulled your blankets over your head with a low groan that only made your headache worse. You blamed Tony Stark for pushing the drinks. Apparently, he found you hilarious when you were drunk and made it his personal mission to get you plastered at every party he threw.

The smell of coffee pulled you out of your anger over Tony’s pushing of drinks. You popped your head out from under the blankets, seeing Frank standing next to your bed with a fresh cup of coffee. He had even used your favorite mug, the Little Mermaid mug that Natasha had gotten you for Christmas last year.

“I put a shit ton of sugar in it.” Frank stated as he handed over the mug.

“God bless you.” You whispered before taking a sip of the coffee. You looked up to see Frank smirking at you, looking incredibly amused. “Oh man, how bad do I look?”

“You look like you got in a fight at a makeup counter.” He replied with snort that was almost a laugh.

You pushed your tangled hair out of your face with a long sigh. “Yeah, that makes sense. I should probably shower. Thanks for helping me out last night.” You felt a faint blush appearing on your cheeks as you recalled Frank helping you out of your dress and into sweats. He had been a perfect gentleman, and that made him even _more_ attractive to you.

“Well, you always take care of me.” He replied. “I made breakfast.”

“You’re the _best_.” You smiled at him. “I’ll eat once I get a shower in. Sorry you had to see me sloppy drunk.”

“I’m just glad you made it home ok.” Frank nodded before leaving the room.

You felt your heart swelling at the fact that he had called your apartment _home_. After two and a half months of crashing on your couch, he considered you place home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I rewrote this chapter because I'm horrible at keeping things in order when I'm writing.


	8. Nightmares

The rustling sound wasn’t what woke him up. What had woken him up was the sound of a pained gasp coming from your room. Instantly, Frank was off the couch he had made his own after you had pretty much ordered him to crash on your couch whenever he needed a place to stay.

He quickly and quietly made his way through your apartment, stopping when he got to the cracked door of you room. He knew what your room looked like, he had slept there after he had gotten that nasty cut on his collar bone that was a nice pink scar on his skin. He had also been in it after you had come home from a party drunk off your ass and needed help changing.

That night liked to replay itself in his mind. You in that red dress that fit like a dream, then helping you get undressed. He had seen the numerous scars that littered your back from fights and it pained him to know that you had gotten so many wounds. You were such a nice person, always taking care of him. He believed you deserved the nicest things in life.

He hadn’t been in your room since that night, mostly because he felt awkward in your room and partly because he was starting to get feelings for you despite every part of him telling him that he shouldn’t.

He peered inside of your room, seeing you tossing and turning in your bed. He could tell you were having a pretty nasty nightmare. Normally, he would have just left you alone to it, but he couldn’t force himself to go back to the couch. He quietly made his way into your room, going to your bed and shaking you gently.

“Hey,” He murmured. “(Y/N), wake up-“

You jolted awake, your fist flying up and hitting him in the nose hard enough to make his vision double a little. He grunted in pain, but managed to grab your wrist to keep you from hitting him again. Your breathing was ragged, your chest heaving up and down as you realized you were awake.

“Frank?” You frowned up at him, your voice cracking slightly. In the dim light of the moon shining into your room, he could see tears glimmering in your eyes.

“You’re okay,” He murmured as he sat on the edge of your bed and pulled you into his arms. You let out a small sob into his chest, gripping his shirt tightly as if he were anchoring you to the world. “S’just a bad dream, none of it was real.”

“It felt so real,” You whispered as he rubbed your back in a soothing gesture. “I was- I was back in the labs and-“ You hiccuped before breaking into another sob. Frank sighed, continuing to rub your back.

He knew what it was like to be plagued by nightmares. He had his own fair share between the loss of his family and the time he spent in the Marines. He knew that when the nightmares were really bad it helped to have someone there to help you get through it. Of course, he was used to being the one being comforted. It was odd having to comfort someone else.

Your nightmares were something new to hear about. In his almost three months of living in your apartment, you hadn’t had a nightmare bad enough to actually wake him up. Not to mention hearing about _labs_. He knew that you had been a part of some kind of experiments to make the perfect soldier. And he only knew because you had drunkenly told him. He was too anxious to actually ask you about it.

“You’re okay.” He repeated. “You’re not there anymore, see? You’re nice and safe in your apartment.” He let go of you, seeing tears on your cheeks.

“It felt so _real_.” You whispered. “God-“ You shoved your hair out of your face before wiping the tears off of your cheeks. “I need a drink.”

“It’s five AM.” He pointed out as you climbed out of bed.

“Right…” You muttered. “Guess I’m going for a run. Wanna join me?”

He blinked, “You run for fun?”

“Cap’s rubbing off on me.” You shrugged. “You don’t have to-“

“No, I’ll go.” He replied. “Keep an eye on you so you don’t have to worry about people following you.”

“Don’t be so paranoid, Frank.” You rolled your eyes as you grabbed a pair of workout pants from your dresser.

He smirked, “Part of the job.”  


	9. Vigilante Help

You knew that Frank preferred to do his vigilantism alone. Of course, he hadn’t explicitly told you to stay away from his night time activities. Which was how you found yourself trailing after him through Hell’s Kitchen in the dark of the night.

He had been coming back to the apartment with a lot more bruises and wounds that usual, which was saying a lot. The man was a walking bruise most of the time, so seeing him more busted up than usual was really starting to cause you to worry.

You managed to find him after twenty minutes of hard core free running over the roofs in Hell’s Kitchen. You made sure to keep your distance, your SHIELD training making you much more stealthy than he was. You felt a little smug over that.

Frank was currently waiting on a nearby rooftop with a very impressive sniper rifle. You wondered if it was from your own collection, but you knew he wouldn’t use one of your weapons without asking you first. Frank was polite like that.

Men in biker gear began to pour out of the bar, and Frank began firing. The men began to freak out and fire back towards the rooftop Frank was firing from. You peaked over the edge of the roof you were stationed on, keeping a watchful eye on Frank.

There was a pained grunt, and Frank ducked down. You cursed under your breath, getting to your feet and taking a running leap. You were two roofs away from him, and you hoped your feet would carry you fast enough. Finally, you landed in a roll on the roof he was on. He was putting pressure on his neck where a bullet must have grazed him.

“(Y/N)?” He growled as he looked up at you. “The hell…are you doing…here?”

“Saving your ass from the looks of it.” You replied, grabbing the rifle and putting it up against your shoulder as you peered through the scope. “Those guys looked pretty pissed.”

"I can handle myself.” Frank snarled, attempting to grab the rifle from you. You angled your body, putting your boot on his chest to keep him from getting too close. You squeezed the trigger expertly, taking down the bikers with ease. You moved quickly, and they quickly retreated back into the bar to get away from your expert rifle skills. You sat down the rifle, removing your boot from Frank’s Kevlar lined chest.

"I had it handled.” Frank hissed.

“Jesus,” You muttered, moving his hand away from the wound on his neck. The bullet had only grazed him, but there was a lot of blood that had you worried. “Frank, we need to get you home-“

“I don’t _have_ a home.” He growled, swatting your hand away.

You pulled away from him as if you had been slapped. Your brow furrowed in concern and hurt as you looked at him. It had been almost three months since he had started living with you, and to hear him deny that was his home…well, it hurt.

"Frank-“ You stopped as your phone began to vibrate in your pocket. You quickly pulled it out, seeing it was a text from Cap announcing that something bad was happening at the Tower and the team needed you ASAP. “Shit. _Shit._ I have to go.”

“Then go.” Frank grunted as he got to his feet. You could hear sirens getting closer, and your heart dropped into your stomach. If the police found an Avenger at the scene of a very bloody crime, you were done for.

“Frank, I’m sorry-“

“Save it.” He muttered. “Get the hell out of here before you get arrested.” He grabbed the rifle, slinging it over his shoulder as he clapped a hand over the wound on his neck.

You took a running leap to the next roof over, wondering if you had just ruined an already rocky relationship with a vigilante you had a lot in common with.


	10. Aftermath

Frank didn’t attempt to go back to your apartment for a week. He needed time to process what had happened when you had just showed up and helped him with that biker gang who were selling drugs to kids.

He was angry because he hadn’t noticed you following him. He was angry that you had just jumped in and…and _saved_ him. No one had saved him in a long time, and he found it incredibly…annoying? Terrifying? …sweet? He wasn’t sure how to feel about it because it had never happened before.

After a week, he pieced together his already broken pride and made his way back to your apartment. He climbed in through the window as he usually did, but he realized something was off as he entered. There was no music playing, the entire apartment felt too still. He quietly sat down his duffle bag under the window, grabbing the pistol he kept on top of the rest of his gear before making his way through your apartment. He checked every room, every little space he thought you could fit in. You weren’t anywhere to be found, and it sent a jolt of panic through him.

It wasn’t like you didn’t have a life of you own, a job protecting the world with the Avengers. Yet, he still couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off.

He dropped his gun back into his bag, grabbing your StarkPad off of your coffee table. He saw the percentage was down to twenty-two percent, which was incredibly odd. Your StarkPad was always fully charged, and to see it so low on battery told him his suspicions that something was wrong were correct.

He quickly pulled up the news app you had downloaded, searching for anything related to the Avengers. The first story that popped up had an accompanying video. The thumbnail set his nerves on edge as he recognized what was clearly a warzone.

 _Avengers Battle Army of Robots in Sovokia._ The headline read. He clicked on the link, and the story opened up quickly. He scanned through it, seeing that one Avenger had died, and another was severely injured. They hadn’t named any names, but Frank immediately thought the worst.

His chest suddenly felt too tight. The walls of your apartment were starting to feel as if they were caving in around him, and he had to fight to keep his breathing even.

You were dead. The last things he had ever said to you were horrible and he hadn’t been able to apologize-

The universe really did hate him.

He startled as he heard the front door rattle. Without thinking, he rushed for it. He was blinded by the hope that you had survived the battle at Sovokia.

However, when the door opened, he was greeted with the sight of a different Avenger. The guy was shorter than him, with sandy brown hair and eyes that told Frank he was always looking for ways to get out of a situation.

“Holy shit,” The guy muttered. “You’re the Punisher.”

Frank’s hands clenched into fists, preparing for a fight. The Avengers worked for the law, which meant the guy in front of him was more than likely going to try and take him in.

“Y’know,” The guy continued with an amused smirk. “(Y/N) told me that you might be here but I thought she was just fucking with me.”

Frank’s heart stuttered at the mention of you. “She’s alive?”

“Barely,” The guy replied. “I’m here to pick up some of her stuff to take to her. I’m Clint, by the way.”

“Hawkeye,” Frank nodded, letting Clint inside. “Is…(Y/N) okay?”

“Well,” Clint sighed, scrubbing a hand across his jaw. “She was in critical condition for about three days before they could move her to a normal room. She got caught in an explosion and they had to amputate her left arm up to the elbow. She’s tough, she’ll be fine. Stark’s already making her a fancy new arm that’ll work a lot like the Winter Soldier’s arm.”

Frank nodded, “She’s tough.”

“Right…” Clint nodded. “Look, you don’t have to look like you’re about to kill me, buddy. I’m not turning you in because (Y/N) asked me not to. I don’t need her kicking my ass into next year for getting her boyfriend incarcerated.”

Frank snorted, “I’m not her boyfriend.”

“Oh--well, still,” Clint shrugged. “Hey, if you wanna see her, I can help you get in and get out of the hospital without you getting caught.”

“Why would you do that for me?” Frank frowned.

“Because (Y/N) doesn’t have many friends, and she seems to really like you.” Clint replied. “I can get you ten minutes tomorrow night while the nurses are changing shifts."


	11. Hospital Visit

Being back in a hospital was making Frank a little fidgety. It was bringing back a lot of memories of being in one himself, strapped to a bed with little contact except from the lawyers and terrified looking nurses.

He ducked around the corner, quickly making his way to your hospital room. He peered inside, seeing you were lying on a bed, the only person in the room. He quietly made his way inside, seeing you were strapped to numerous machines. You were asleep, and he felt relief flood through him as he realized you were still alive.

You stirred as he got to the side of your bed. Slowly, you turned your head to look up at him with heavy-lidded eyes. A sleepy smile lit up your face.

“Well, your neck looks better.”

“You’re lying in a hospital bed and you’re still worried about me?” Frank snorted, amused at your inability to put yourself first in a situation like the one you were currently in.

You smirked, “I’m all right.” You held up your left arm, and he winced at the sight of the missing limb. There was a small section just below your elbow left, covered in gauze.

“Did you just make a fucking _joke_?” Frank sighed, scrubbing a hand across his face. “You’re an idiot.”

“Stark thought it was funny.” You replied as you sat your arm back down.

“Stark doesn’t sound like he’s right in the head.” Frank muttered.

“He’s not,” You sighed. Frank could see a glimmer of nervousness in your eyes that had him concerned. He hadn’t actually _seen_ you nervous since he had almost died in your bed from a stab wound to the gut.

“You ok?”

“I don’t like hospitals.” You replied quietly, giving him a small smile that didn’t quite reach your eyes. “I’m surprised you came to see me. Thought you were mad at me.” You quickly changed the subject.

“Wasn’t mad,” He replied, carefully taking your only hand in his. “Just…confused, I guess.”

“Confused?”

He sighed, “Look, m’not used to people trying to take care of me. M’still not sure why you’re trying to take care of me.”

He felt you squeeze his hand, and he finally met your eyes.

“Because you need someone in your life that actually cares about you, Frank.” You said gently. “You run around Hell’s Kitchen and get the shit beat out of you. I know what it’s like to get beaten on a daily basis because of my job, but I have a team to fall back on. I’m not saying you need a team…but you still need _someone_ to keep you from dying. Being a vigilante is a lonely life, don’t make it any lonelier than it has to be.”

Frank let out a small chuckle, it felt rough coming out of his throat. And a little wrong, but he couldn’t help it. From the moment you had stumbled into Frank’s life, he couldn’t seem to shake your worry for him.

He leaned down, pressing a kiss to the top of your head. “I’ll see you at home, alright?”

The smile you gave him made his entire world seem a little brighter. He smiled back, giving your hand a final squeeze before he made his way out of the room.


	12. Going Home

After nearly a month of surgeries and recovering in the hospital, you were released to go home. You nearly ran for the doors once you were officially released. Being in hospitals reminded you of your time as a test subject for the army.

You inhaled the outdoor air as you stepped out of the front doors of the hospital, a relieved smile on your face. The metal plates on your new arm shifted as if your new appendage could feel your relief. You looked down at the metal hand, flexing your fingers.

“Nice hardware.”

You looked up to see Frank in his usual getup as he leaned against your car. He had his baseball cap pulled low over his bruised face, and you were incredibly happy to see him. You quickly went over to him, and he took your duffle bag off your shoulder that didn’t have a sling on it.

“If you make a cyborg joke, I’m going to punch you in the face with my new hardware.” You threatened jokingly. Frank smirked at you, tossing your bag into the backseat before opening the passenger side door for you.

“Yes ma’am.” He chuckled.

“(Y/N)!”

Frank ducked his head, and you turned to see Steve making his way over to you. Steve had been a frequent visitor to your bedside during your recovery, and he was also an incredibly good friend when he wasn’t breaking your nose during training.

“Hey, Cap.” You greeted. “What’s up?”

“Just wanted to make sure you were getting home okay.” He glanced quizzically at Frank. “Who’s this?”

“My…uh—roommate.” You replied as you glanced at Frank. He was looking down at his feet, his hands in his pockets. “He’s kind of shy.”

Steve held his hand out, “Steve Rogers.”

“Frank,” Frank shook his hand with a faint nod, still keeping his head low. “Nice to meet you.”

“Likewise,” Steve nodded as he dropped Frank’s hand. You watched Steve’s face, watching for any kind of expression that meant Steve recognized one of the most wanted men in the country. Steve turned his attention to you. “I’ll see you at physical therapy Thursday, right?”

“Yeah,” You nodded. “Thanks for doing that with me, by the way.”

“Well,” Steve sighed, rubbing the back of his neck as guilt flashed across his features. “It’s kind of my-“

“No,” You cut him off. “Stop blaming yourself, Rogers. Even your super-soldier ass couldn’t get across that parking lot fast enough to save me. Besides, I’m fine, now.”

“Right.” Steve murmured. “See you Thursday.”

Steve walked away, heading for his motorcycle parked by the curb. Once he was gone, you looked at Frank.

“You okay?” You asked worriedly.

“M’fine,” Frank grunted. You didn’t exactly buy it, but you didn’t want to push it. You slid into the passenger seat, then Frank shut the door before heading to the driver’s side. He drove off, fiddling with the radio silently as he drove.

“Look, Steve didn’t recognize you.” You told him after he gave up on finding a radio station and just turned the radio off. “And Clint isn’t going to tell anyone about you because I think he’s afraid of me.”

Frank snorted, “Be dumb _not_ to be scared of you.” You could tell he was deflecting, and you sighed, resting your left hand on his arm that was resting on the center console between your seats. He glanced over at you, and you saw his façade of nonchalance cracking.

“What’s up, Frank?”

“You and… _Rogers_ seem awfully chummy.”

Why was Frank even bringing that—

 _Oh_.

“Frank,” You sighed, giving his arm a gentle squeeze. “Steve and I are just friends. He’s like a big, burly brother I never really wanted. The two of us are classified as super-soldiers, so we hang out a lot and complain about the other Avengers.” An amused smirk lit up your face. “Are you jealous?”

“He’s Captain America.” Frank stated, shooting you a very unamused glare.

You laughed quietly as you shook your head. “You’re ridiculous, Castle.”

“Says the cyborg.” He smirked teasingly at you.

You punched him in the arm, and he laughed.

* * *

You walked into your apartment, incredibly glad to be home again. You had spent nearly a month in the hospital while you recovered from your accident. You had been ready to go home the moment you woke up in that hospital room.

“You want a drink?” Frank murmured as he sat your bag on the coffee table.

“I can get it myself.” You replied as you made your way to the kitchen. Frank followed you, hovering protectively.

As you stepped into the kitchen, you came to a dead halt as you saw a dog lounging in the middle of the kitchen floor.

“There’s a dog.” You said dumbly, still staring at the pit bull that was now looking back at you with dark eyes. His tail began to thump against the tile floor, and you were incredibly confused. You didn’t own a dog, and now there was one sitting in your kitchen.

It wasn’t like you didn’t want a dog, you would have loved to have one. You just didn’t have time to take care of one. Between your job with the Avengers and helping save the world, you couldn’t take care of a dog.

“Some punk kids were beating him, I couldn’t let them hurt him.” Frank shoved his hands in his pockets, ducking his head as if he were waiting for you to yell at him. “His name’s Max.”

You kneeled in front of the dog, smiling at the pit bull with its big brown eyes and short brown fur. You pet his head with your good hand, and Max turned his head to lick your hand. You laughed quietly, feeling a lot better than you had before.

“M’glad you like him. That mean he can stay?” Frank was looking down at his shoes, looking like a little kid begging his parents to keep the stray dog that had followed him home from school.

“Well, I won’t be at work for a while, I think I have time for a dog.” You chuckled as you got to your feet. Frank smiled at you, clearly excited he could keep Max. “So, anything else I should know about?”

“Just glad you’re back.” He shrugged, ducking his head as he looked as his feet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, man. I'm almost done with this. 
> 
> I JUST LOVE FRANK CASTLE SO MUCH AND HE DESERVES SOME HAPPINESS AND SOMEONE TO WATCH OVER HIM.


	13. Kidnapped

Frank was sleeping soundly on the couch when you woke up. The furrow he usually had to his brow was gone, replaced with a peaceful look you wished you could see more often. The guy was just too worked up and paranoid, and you wished you could give him some kind of peace in his life. He definitely deserved it after everything he’s been through.

You heard a faint scratching, and you looked to the door to see Max was the source. You quietly made your way over to him, grabbing the leash off the hook by the door and clipped it onto his spiked collar.

Quietly, you and Max made your way out of the apartment. You were glad Max was a well-mannered dog, because you couldn’t really use your left arm due to it being in a sling and still healing. You glanced down at you hand, glad you had forgotten to take your glove off last night. It saved you the trouble of having to put one on.

You were incredibly grateful to have the arm, however, you would rather have your real arm back.

Sovokia had been hell on Earth. Hundreds of robots swarming the city, you and your team—along with the Maximoff twins—had managed to save the world from being destroyed. Unfortunately, it had cost Pietro his life, and you had gotten trapped in a building. The Hulk was the only person strong enough to dig you out, and by then you had blacked out from the blood loss.

Those first two weeks after the battle had been met with horrific nightmares of being buried again. The horrific feeling of your limb being severed by a broken metal beam. It hadn’t hurt, but not being able to _feel_ your arm anymore was something you weren’t sure you could get used to.

“C’mon, Max, hurry up.” You mumbled as Max sniffed around a tree.

You flinched as you felt something prick your neck. You switched the leash to your metal hand, feeling your neck with your right hand.

Your blood ran cold as you plucked a tranqdart out of your neck. You whipped your head towards the direction it came from, paling as you saw a few men rushing over.

You stumbled backwards, a scream dying on your lips as your world went black.    

* * *

 

You came to in a dimly lit room. The only light was the one above you, and you squinted at your surroundings until your eyes adjusted to the lighting.

There were four men in the room. One was guarding the door, one was standing by a window to guard it, another was standing next to a small metal table full of various objects you assumed were for torture. The final guy seemed like the leader, and he smirked smugly at you.

Being held captive wasn’t exactly new for you. You had worked for SHIELD and had been held captive exactly three times prior to your current situation. These guys weren’t exactly good at this sort of thing, you realized. They had bound you with zip-ties that you knew you could get out of easily, especially with your new cybernetic arm. However, you held off on your escape to see why you had been kidnapped in the first place. Not to mention you weren’t supposed to use your new arm for anything strenuous until the metal finished healing to the bone.

The men who had kidnapped you didn’t seem to recognize the fact that they had kidnapped an _Avenger_. They really were shitty at their jobs.

“Hey, quick question,” You called out to your captors. They all scowled at you. You could see they all had guns on them. “Where’s my dog?”

“He ran away when we grabbed you.” A man replied smugly as he walked over to you. He spoke in a Russian accent. “Not much of a guard dog.”

“Max isn’t my guard dog.” You replied, shifting in your chair to try and find a more comfortable position. “We’re more like buddies.”

“Why have you not asked why we’ve brought you here?” He leaned down to eye level with you. “Most people would be crying about now.”

You shrugged, feigning boredom. “Not my first time being held hostage.”

That certainly caught the guy’s attention, and he quickly schooled his shocked expression into the smug one you assumed was his default setting.

“It seems the Punisher’s girl is feisty.”

So, this was about Frank. These guys had figured out you and Frank had… _something_ close to a relationship and they were eager to exploit it. You wondered how Frank was handling the situation, and you realized he was going to blame himself for you getting kidnapped. Even if he knew that you were more than capable to protect yourself, he would still see this was his fault.

“What do you guys want with the Punisher?” You growled, a protectiveness rolling over you. They’d have to go through you to get Frank.

“He attacked a bar my men were at.” The guy you assumed to be the leader, now, stated. “A month ago, and I lost a lot of good men.”

You snorted a laugh, “Frank didn’t do that. I did.”

Now everyone was looking at you in various stages of shock or disbelief or both. You heard a few of them conversing in Russian with the leader guy.

" _You_ did that?” Leader scoffed after a moment. “You do not seem like the kind of person to know how to use a sniper rifle, little girl.”

You rolled your eyes, “That’s a bit sexist, don’t you think?”

Leader walked over to you, grabbing your chin in his hand. He forced you to look up at him, and you could see a low fire simmering in his eyes. He was clearly angry with you for offing some of his men.

“You have quite the mouth on you.” He growled. “Perhaps we should teach you a lesson?”

“Right, have fun.” You shrugged, a smug smile on your face.

The smug smile seemed to piss him off, and he let go of your face to backhand you. Due to your enhancement, you didn’t feel the sting of the slap. You grinned menacingly at your captor, seeing a slight fear in his eyes when he saw you didn’t seem fazed by the slap.

“You hit like a bitch.”

The guy let out a growl of frustration, hitting you again. Your head whipped to the side, and you could tell you had bitten your cheek. You spit blood out before you looked up at him.

“C’mon, you can do better than that-“ You grunted as he punched you this time with as much strength as he could gather. The chair fell to the side, and you let out a laugh once the air refilled your lungs. You spit out more blood, feeling some of it trailing down your cheek as you looked up at him. “All you’re doing is pissing me off, buddy.”

The boot to your face knocked you out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for taking so long to update! Work has been hell, and I've just been too exhausted to do anything once I get home.
> 
> \--  
> As always, comments and kudos are greatly appreciated!


	14. Bloodbath

When you came to again, you were sitting up right. You could feel the metal plates of your arm whirring in your annoyance at still being tied up. You ran your tongue over your teeth, relieved to find they were all still in their rightful places.

“Ah, you’re awake.” The leader scowled at you.

You looked around, seeing there were numerous other men in the room with you. You assumed the leader guy had called in reinforcements for some reason.

“I see you found friends.” You mused, giving the newcomers a dark smile. Some of them fidgeted nervously as you looked at them. Good. You wanted them to be afraid. You were done with being their captive, and were ready to kick all of their asses.

“Well, one of my men recognized you.” Leader stated. “You’re an Avenger.”

You laughed, “I was wondering when you idiots would figure it out. So, are you going to let me go, or is this going to be a messy job for me?”

Leader scoffed, “You are locked in a room with all these men.” He gestured to the large group. “Do you really believe you can take all of us out on your own?”

You snapped the zip tie around your wrists, bringing your hands forward to massage your flesh wrist. The men startled, aiming numerous weapons at you. You didn’t flinch, looking up smugly at your captors.

“None of you seem to understand.” You sighed as you got to your feet. The men stared at you in utter horror. “I’m not locked in here with you.” You pulled the glove off of your cybernetic hand, revealing the metal that was fused to your skin. “ _You’re_ locked in here with _me._ ”

“Kill her!” Leader snarled.

You lunged at the unlucky bastard closest to you, wrapping your metal arm around his neck and using him as a human shield as the men began to fire. You heard the bullets sinking into his body. You grabbed the gun out of his hand, firing at the men. You had top notch aim, quickly taking them out.

Your human shield became dead weight, and you dropped him. You ducked behind a table, knocking it over and creating a shield. You peered over the edge, firing at the men until you ran out of ammo. You then hurled the gun, pegging one guy between the eyes hard enough to knock him out. He crumpled to the ground, and you ducked behind the table and grabbed the knife you always kept in your boot.

There was a constant pressure on the part of your arm where metal met flesh, and you rolled your sleeve up to see that the part of your arm still healing was red and angry. You cursed under your breath, realizing you had more than likely just fucked up your new arm. You decided to worry about it after you got out of wherever you were.

There was a pause in the gunfire, and you used the moment to jump out from behind the table. You tackled the nearest guy, your knife sinking into his neck. He choked from the blood now spilling into his throat, and you rolled off of him still holding your knife. You slashed at the next guy, slicing at his Achilles tendon and making him howl in pain as he fell to the ground.

You rolled to your feet, swinging your metal fist and clocking a guy in the jaw as he got closer. He fell to the ground unconscious, and you ducked behind a pillar as someone else began firing at you.

“You can’t take us all!” Leader snarled.

“Watch me!” You hissed, charging from your hiding spot with your knife ready to strike. You stabbed one guy in the gut, leaving your knife in as you wrapped your arm around his neck. You used him as a shield, taking a quick count of the men in the room.

Four. There were four left until you could get out of here. Including the leader who was looking at you in utter horror. You grabbed your human shield’s gun, firing with expert precision. You hit two guys with one bullet, the bullet flying through the first guy’s skull and hitting the guy behind him in the eye. They both hit the ground as the door to the warehouse door opened. You cursed, knowing it was reinforcements.

You dropped your human shield, grabbing your knife before he hit the ground. You charged the last lackey, your knife sinking into his throat as you turned to face the leader. You raised the gun, a smug smile on your face.

“You made one hell of a mistake, buddy.” You hissed as you got closer. “You don’t fuck with me _or_ the Punisher.”

“Please-“

His pleading was cut off as you fired, the bullet hitting him between the eyes. He fell to the ground, and your arm dropped.

Exhaustion was creeping over you, and you felt your legs give out. Your knees slammed into the pavement, your hands hit it next as you tried to fight off the blackout you knew was coming.

“(Y/N)?”

You looked up, your heart stuttering as you recognized the man standing over you.

“Frank…”

The world went black.


	15. Rescue

Frank managed to find the warehouse after five hours of busting heads and demanding information. He could feel fear gripping him as he got closer. He wasn’t afraid of the fight that was in store for him—In fact, he was looking forward to it.

What had him afraid was the fact that _you_ had been kidnapped while walking Max. Max had come back to the apartment alone, and Frank had quickly gone into Punisher mode to look for you. He didn’t want to think what those bastards were doing to you.

Unfortunately, he had also gone to get help from the one guy who pissed him off more than anything else in the world. Red.

“I can hear fighting inside.” Red announced as they got closer to the warehouse. “Mostly hand-to-hand-“ Red stopped as a gun started going off. There was a brief moment where they both froze, then Frank was hauling ass to the warehouse doors. He threw them open, revealing an absolute blood bath.

You had your metal arm wrapped around a guy’s throat, using him as a shield as one of the only guys still standing fired at you. The bullets sank into your human shield, and Frank could see a wild fire in your eyes. Your skin was blood spattered, and a new bruise was forming on your cheekbone.

You got a clean headshot to the guy shooting at you, and the bullet flew through his head and hit the guy behind him. They both slumped to the ground dead, you then dropped your human shield, grabbing the knife in his stomach before he hit the ground. You launched yourself at the last armed guy, your knife sinking into his throat. He hit the ground, joining the numerous bodies littering the warehouse floor. You aimed the gun in your hand at the last guy, a murderous rage in your eyes.

“You made one hell of a mistake, buddy.” You hissed. “You don’t mess with me _or_ the Punisher.”

“Please-“ The gun fired, and the last guy fell to the ground.

Your arm dropped, then you fell to your hands and knees with a low groan as if you couldn’t hold yourself up anymore. Frank cursed, rushing towards you.

“(Y/N)?” He sounded as if he were pleading with you to stay conscious.

“Frank…” You smiled before you fell over.

“Shit-“ Frank kneeled down, rolling you onto your back. His fingers went to your neck, his panic subsiding slightly as he felt a steady pulse. He sat back on his heels as he inspected you for any wounds. To his utter surprise, you didn’t have a single scratch or bullet wound on you. Just a few bruises on your face that were going to look even worse in the morning. He rolled up your right sleeve as Red came over. Frank could see the skin around the metal was red and angry from the fight, as if it were still healing.

“This-“ Red gaped. “This is one of the Avengers. You _know_ an Avenger?”

“Long story,” Frank muttered as he scooped you up. You were dead weight in his arms, and he managed to get your head to rest on his chest. Red folded your arms in your lap for him, and he nodded a thank you to him. “We need to get the hell out of here.”

“I can hear sirens getting closer. Come on.”

* * *

Frank watched you like a hawk once Red left.

You were sleeping soundly in your bed, having been cleaned up from the blood that stained your skin. Frank had made sure to erase any evidence that you had been part of a bloodbath, and he would never forget the way you looked covered in blood, that wild fire in your eyes as you took men down with nothing but whatever you could find.

He sat on the bed, his back against the headboard, his hands folded in his lap as he waited for you to wake up.

It was _his_ fault you had been taken. You had told the last guy you had taken out to never mess with you _or_ the Punisher. Which meant you had been kidnapped because of him. It was his fault you had been forced to fight off a bunch of bastards _two days_ after getting out of the hospital. He was nothing but a curse for you, and once you woke up he was going to say goodbye and get the hell away from you for your own good.

You stirred, and he sat up straighter as he watched you slowly open your eyes.

“Hey…” You mumbled, your flesh hand reaching up to rub your eyes.

“Hey,” He replied, a small smile on his face. He brushed your hair out of your face, relief washing through him. You were awake, you were fine. “How do you feel?”

“Nothing hurts,” You smirked up at him. He gave you a look, and you just chuckled. “Calm down, Frank. I’m fine, alright?”

“Good…I should get going-“

“Going?” You frowned, looking out the window to see it was still daylight. “Thought you only worked at night?”

“I’m…leaving.” He sighed, scrubbing a hand across his face. “It’s not safe for me to be around you. S’better if I just leave.”

“Frank,” You groaned, sitting up. “Stop blaming yourself-“

“They took you because of me!”

“They were looking for the guy who took out those bikers a month ago. Well, they found me.” You grabbed his hand. “You can’t take the world on your shoulders, Frank. It’s too heavy, you’re killing yourself.”

“They could have killed you.”

“Well, they tried.” You smirked. “But I’m pretty tough when I need to be.” You raised your metal hand and wiggled the fingers. “Cyborg, remember?”

He couldn’t fight the smirk on his face. He rolled his eyes. “You’re not funny.”

“I’m hilarious,” You replied, squeezing his hand. “Look, just…don’t go? I’m not sure what I’d do without you tracking mud through the apartment, telling me my taste in television is shit—Or what I’d do without you making me coffee every morning.”

Frank swallowed, seeing you were utterly sincere. He reached up, cupping your face in his hands. You leaned into his left hand, your flesh hand reaching up to wrap delicately around his wrist. You looked up at him, and his heart actually felt like it was trying to stutter to a complete stop.

It had been _so long_ since someone had looked at him like that.

Before he could think, before he could _stop himself from doing something stupid_ —he pressed his lips to yours.

You melted into the kiss, and Frank-

Well, he shattered.


	16. Epilogue

Frank stared at the phone in his hands. He knew it was untraceable, so he was safe from anyone trying to track him down. He turned it over in his hands, contemplating if he wanted to torture himself again. He knew it always broke his heart to listen to the voicemail…but he just wanted to hear your voice again.

 It had been three months since you had disappeared. You had gone off with Captain America to hunt someone down, the Winter Soldier. After that…everything had gone to shit.

The Avengers were fighting with each other over some Accords you had denied signing. You had called Frank to explain what was going on, but he had been taking out a drug trafficking ring and missed the call.

He brought up the voicemail, bringing the phone to his ear.

“ _Frank, listen,_ ” Your voice sounded hurried. It also sounded slightly scared, and it broke his heart to hear. You were one of the strongest people he had ever known, and to hear you afraid…well, it was unsettling. “ _These Accords are tearing my team apart. I’m heading to Leipzig to meet up with the others that are on Cap’s side…and I have a feeling it isn’t going to end well. But…”_ You laughed nervously before continuing. “ _You know me, I always have to find a way to save the day. Look…Stark is pretty pissed with me right now, and I think he may go by my place, so I need you to not go back there. Get your stuff and get Max, and get the hell out of Hell’s Kitchen because I don’t want you going back to prison. I know you can probably get out, but I don’t want to chance it. Besides, one of us has to look after Max, and I can’t do it right now._

 _"I…I love you, Frank.”_ Your voice was close to breaking, and he felt his heart shattering. It always shattered more and more when he heard this part of the message. You had said you loved him, and he couldn’t say it back because you weren’t with him. “ _I know we haven’t really said it to each other, yet…but I don’t know if I’ll ever get the chance to say it to you face-to-face. I love you, Frank Castle. I’m gonna do my best to get back to you…and if I don’t…if I don’t make it back to you, I want you to know I love you.”_ Someone said something in the background, and you sighed. _“I have to go. Stay safe out there, alright? Give Max a kiss for me, Frank. I-I hope I can see you soon. I love you.”_

The line went dead, and he locked the phone before setting it on the table in front of him. He sighed, scrubbing a hand across his bruised face.

_Three months._

He hadn’t heard a word from you in three months, and he felt like he was going crazy.

After the death of his wife and children…he had been set in knowing he would never have a love like that again. He had come to terms with it, then you had stumbled into his life and changed his entire world.

And, as it always did, the Universe decided he didn’t deserve happiness. He didn’t deserve a happy ending due to all of the lives he had taken in the name of vengeance.

All he could hope for was that you were safe wherever you were. That you were alive and well, and that you could find someone who could give you what he couldn’t. A stable life, a _normal_ life. You certainly deserved it after all the shit you had been through.

He got up from the booth he had been sitting in, tossing a few bills onto the table before leaving the diner. He kept his cap low over his eyes as he headed down the street. It was late at night, and the small town he was staying in didn’t have a lot of foot traffic this time at night. Hell, there was hardly any traffic at all at night.

He glanced over his shoulder like he always did, frowning as he saw someone a block away from him. They had their head down, their face obscured by a baseball cap that was covered with the hood of their jacket. Their hands were shoved into their pockets, and he turned back around and kept his pace the same.

It might just be some random local, but he knew it could be someone who was after him. He turned a corner into an alley, then quickly darted to the end of it. He hid behind a large dumpster, crouching down and waiting.

“One batch, two batch, penny and a dime…” He murmured to himself as he grabbed the gun hidden in his waistband. He clicked off the safety, and waited.

After a moment, the person following him stopped right before they got to the dumpster. Frank darted out, aiming the gun.

The person calmly held up their hands, and he noticed they were wearing fingerless gloves. However, the fingers on their left hand seemed to be…reflective?

He lowered his gun, his breath rushing out of his lungs in his shock as realization slammed into him like a freight train.

“(Y/N)?”

“Hey, handsome.” You greeted, pulling your hood down. “Long time, no see.”

Frank rushed forward, dropping his gun and pulling you into a tight hug as his lips crashed into yours. You melted into the kiss, your arms going around his neck as your body molded against his.

Franks heart was thundering in his ears, drowning out the world around him. He pulled back from the kiss, reaching up to cradle your face in his gun-calloused hands. 

"I love you." 

Your smile lit up his entire world-- as it always did. 

"I love you, too." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally done! 
> 
> I hope you guys enjoyed this, because I know I did! I love writing Frank Castle, and I might write a different fic with Frank if you guys want one! 
> 
> Thank you so much for reading this story, and for the wonderful comments you've all left! I love reading them, they always make my day so much better.   
> \--  
> Comments and Kudos are always appreciated!


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